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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. present — the time now
  3. chip — to eat
  4. rock — a stone
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. row — a line
  7. shower — to wash
  8. land — to come down
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. row — to paddle
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. present — there
  13. swing — to play on
  14. shower — rain
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. land — ground
  17. swing — music
  18. chip — for betting
  19. swing — in golf
  20. present — a gift
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. land — a country
  23. rock — music
  24. chip — in a computer

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com